Website
National Science and Media Museum, Bradford
This site for a multimedia museum is fit for purpose, says Jonathan Knott
The Bradford institution formerly known as the National Media Museum has launched a new website to reflect its rebranding as the National Science and Media Museum.
The homepage states that the museum is “exploring the transformative impact of image and sound technologies on our lives”. While this doesn’t roll off the tongue, it’s a useful summary of its purpose.
Appropriately, one of the site’s most notable features is its use of moving images. At the time of writing, the homepage was dominated by a video promoting Wonderlab, a new interactive science gallery.
Clips on the food and drink page include a group of young lads bantering over fizzy drinks and a barista finishing off a latte with a fern decoration.
The design also makes heavy use of stark capital lettering. When this is combined with large images and videos – as it often is – it is effective in creating a modern and dynamic feel. But in some places, the cumulative effect can be a bit harsh.
In general, information is presented thoughtfully, with the key facts clearly stated and detail tucked further away. The less essential homepage menu items are hidden in a drop-down option, reducing clutter.
A useful addition on the “Visit us” page is an explanation of what can be found on each floor. The transfer of 400,000 objects from the museum’s photography collection to London’s Victoria and Albert Museum generated controversy last year.
But the website makes clear that there is still a strong emphasis on visual media, including a temporary exhibition on photography in Britain in partnership with BBC Four.
The venue is clearly keen to promote itself as a forward-looking and fun location to visit. This site suggests the claim is worth investigating.
Website
Helsinki Photos
This site makes Helsinki City Museum’s photograph collection available online in high resolution.
The images are provided under a liberal Creative Commons licence, which allows them to be used and edited for a wide range of purposes as long as the museum and photographer are credited (there are some restrictions on commercial use).
Around 45,000 photos are available but the collection will grow as more images are digitised. The site includes some content in English, although the text accompanying the photos is in Finnish.
Since this limits the search function, it’s useful to browse the curated albums. Subjects include trams, the German occupation of the city in 1918 and snapshots of city life by noted Finnish photographers.
While there is a language barrier for an international audience, the site’s visual
focus means that it offers an atmospheric insight into the city’s history for any visitor. JK
App
Dawn Chorus
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh have come up with an imaginative solution for people who want to wake up to something more soothing than the beep of an alarm clock.
The museum service’s Innovation Studio, which develops experimental digital projects, has launched a free app that allows you to create your own alarm using birdsong.
Dawn Chorus contains short sound files representing 20 birds native to western Pennsylvania. Sourced from the Macaulay Library at Cornell University, these range from the melodic chirruping of the magnolia warbler to the squawk of the blue jay and the tapping of the yellow-bellied sapsucker (a type of woodpecker).
Users can play these individually or combine them in groups of up to five to create an alarm. The sounds are accompanied by photos and accurately drawn illustrations of the birds, as well as brief descriptions that touch on the threats facing them.
There is also information from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History on its research centre in a nature reserve and Birdsafe Pittsburgh, a local initiative that aims to prevent birds colliding with windows.
This user-friendly app widens access to a digital collection and expands the concept of what a museum does. Hopefully it will inspire other projects that unlock museum and archive content. JK
National Science and Media Museum, Bradford
This site for a multimedia museum is fit for purpose, says Jonathan Knott
The Bradford institution formerly known as the National Media Museum has launched a new website to reflect its rebranding as the National Science and Media Museum.
The homepage states that the museum is “exploring the transformative impact of image and sound technologies on our lives”. While this doesn’t roll off the tongue, it’s a useful summary of its purpose.
Appropriately, one of the site’s most notable features is its use of moving images. At the time of writing, the homepage was dominated by a video promoting Wonderlab, a new interactive science gallery.
Clips on the food and drink page include a group of young lads bantering over fizzy drinks and a barista finishing off a latte with a fern decoration.
The design also makes heavy use of stark capital lettering. When this is combined with large images and videos – as it often is – it is effective in creating a modern and dynamic feel. But in some places, the cumulative effect can be a bit harsh.
In general, information is presented thoughtfully, with the key facts clearly stated and detail tucked further away. The less essential homepage menu items are hidden in a drop-down option, reducing clutter.
A useful addition on the “Visit us” page is an explanation of what can be found on each floor. The transfer of 400,000 objects from the museum’s photography collection to London’s Victoria and Albert Museum generated controversy last year.
But the website makes clear that there is still a strong emphasis on visual media, including a temporary exhibition on photography in Britain in partnership with BBC Four.
The venue is clearly keen to promote itself as a forward-looking and fun location to visit. This site suggests the claim is worth investigating.
Website
Helsinki Photos
This site makes Helsinki City Museum’s photograph collection available online in high resolution.
The images are provided under a liberal Creative Commons licence, which allows them to be used and edited for a wide range of purposes as long as the museum and photographer are credited (there are some restrictions on commercial use).
Around 45,000 photos are available but the collection will grow as more images are digitised. The site includes some content in English, although the text accompanying the photos is in Finnish.
Since this limits the search function, it’s useful to browse the curated albums. Subjects include trams, the German occupation of the city in 1918 and snapshots of city life by noted Finnish photographers.
While there is a language barrier for an international audience, the site’s visual
focus means that it offers an atmospheric insight into the city’s history for any visitor. JK
App
Dawn Chorus
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh have come up with an imaginative solution for people who want to wake up to something more soothing than the beep of an alarm clock.
The museum service’s Innovation Studio, which develops experimental digital projects, has launched a free app that allows you to create your own alarm using birdsong.
Dawn Chorus contains short sound files representing 20 birds native to western Pennsylvania. Sourced from the Macaulay Library at Cornell University, these range from the melodic chirruping of the magnolia warbler to the squawk of the blue jay and the tapping of the yellow-bellied sapsucker (a type of woodpecker).
Users can play these individually or combine them in groups of up to five to create an alarm. The sounds are accompanied by photos and accurately drawn illustrations of the birds, as well as brief descriptions that touch on the threats facing them.
There is also information from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History on its research centre in a nature reserve and Birdsafe Pittsburgh, a local initiative that aims to prevent birds colliding with windows.
This user-friendly app widens access to a digital collection and expands the concept of what a museum does. Hopefully it will inspire other projects that unlock museum and archive content. JK